Before the Beginning: Year 6
by amorawolfe
Summary: After the disastrous events of her fifth year at Hogwarts, Lily Evans is now estranged from her former best friend, Severus Snape, and, in an odd turn, finds herself becoming closer to the Marauders. The signs of war grow more ominous every day as You-Know-Who gains power. Severus has chosen his side. Now Lily will have to chose hers. A sequel to Before the Beginning: Year 5.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hello, my lovely readers. I know most of you have given up on me by now, but here's the first chapter to year six! Sorry I've been gone for so long – believe it or not, I've been writing an original novel. But I need a break from it for a while, and also I missed writing these characters, even though they aren't mine.**

**Just a reminder, I'm obsessed with the idea of making my interpretation of the world fit into every bit of cannon that exists. That's a bit harder now. I'd hoped that Pottermore would give out more information quicker than it has, but I'm sick of waiting for more anecdotes. So from now on, it's going to get a little more free form now that I don't have the basic plot points laid out for me by JKR like I did for year five. We'll see how it goes.**

_**I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good.**_

Lily Evans was going insane. It could have been intense paranoia, or it could have been the truth, but she felt that she could not leave the house. Any chance of walking down the road could lead to a run-in with her ex-best friend Severus Snape, and that was the last thing that she needed right now.

Severus had already tried to contact her seventeen times – a difficult feat, seeing as Lily hardly left the house since the start of the summer. On the few times that she had tried, however, there was Severus: on the sidewalk, behind the lamppost, even waiting outside the grocery store.

"How could you have possibly known I'd be here?" Lily finally yelled in exasperation.

"I heard your mum say that she was sending you on a errand when she was getting out the car."

"That's stalking, Severus, and it needs to stop."

He even dared to come straight up to the house once. Thankfully, Lily had filled her parents in – somewhat – to the situation. Lily had told them that Severus had fallen into the wrong crowd, that they had gotten into a big fight, and that she would prefer not to see him anymore. After that, Severus gave up for a while.

Lily neglected to tell her parents about the part when her former best friend called her the worst name he could possibly think of in front of her entire class, while her other group of friends publically humiliated him.

Maybe Lily had a bad taste in friends.

However, it was clear to Lily which group of friends she was going to side with if she had to pick a side – which, as it turned out, she did. Because not only was Severus Snape getting himself in with a bad crowd, he was getting involved with the worst crowd imaginable – the group of Slytherins who wanted more than anything to be in league with You-Know-Who. His name wasn't really You-Know-Who, of course, but Lily shivered even thinking his real name. It was said that if You-Know-Who's name was spoken out loud, that a magic trace was immediately placed on the speaker so that You-Know-Who's supporters could find and punish people who took their master's name in vain. And now he was gaining power in the Wizarding World, and the mere thought of it made Lily sick to her stomach.

You-Know-Who and his followers were extremely anti-Muggle (non-magic person) and favoured wizards and witches of pure-blooded magical descent. This had been the main rift that had caused Lily and Severus to "break-up." Lily was Muggle-born, meaning that she had magical powers, enough so to be accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but neither of her parents had magical blood.

Severus had begun hanging around Slytherins who showed signs of Muggle hatred early on at Hogwarts, and even though Severus loved Lily in a way that she was never able to return, in the heat of a moment, Severus called Lily the most unforgivable name: Mudblood.

Now, Severus was doing everything in his power to talk to Lily and make her forgive him, but it was no good. Lily was done. She'd had enough. She could no longer defend Severus to her friends or to herself. Unless Severus stopped aspiring to become a Death Eater, Lily would not be able to forgive him; and she severely doubted that they could ever go back to normal, even if he did renounce his "friends."

To add to this, Severus lived in the neighboring town, meaning that Lily had to constantly live in a semi-paranoid state, wondering when would be the next time she'd turn around and see him standing there, forcing all of the terrible emotions she was trying to suppress right back to the surface again.

At the same time, Lily could not stay inside the house, either. Lily had only one sibling: her sister, Petunia. Though they had once been very close, the second Lily had been accepted to Hogwarts and Petunia hadn't, everything had changed. Bitter at not being able to have the same as Lily, Petunia chose to hate magic and everything about it, including her sister.

So, inside the house, Lily could expect to be insulted, tripped, and mocked; while outside the house she could expect to be cornered, annoyed, and stalked. There was no escape.

It was all this that led Lily to the craziest (and possibly the best) decision she had ever made. Upon doing her laundry one night, Lily was emptying the pockets of all of her jeans, when she came across a small piece of parchment with an address written on it in boyish handwriting.

James Potter's handwriting.

James Potter had the biggest ego in the entire school, even more so than his closest friend, Sirius Black. Star of the Quidditch pitch and incredibly skilled in magic, James Potter had a knack of walking around the school with a cocky stride, while ruffling his hair to make it look like he had just gotten off his broomstick (though it could be said that the hair-ruffling was Lily's fault – she had made the serious mistake of complimenting him on it during what could only be diagnosed as a fit of insanity).

Lily and James had fought for the majority of their first five years at Hogwarts. It was only the previous year that they had actually stayed on speaking terms for more than a week. That mixed with the strange events of James saving Severus's life, and then comforting her after Severus had broken her, seemed to pull them together in a way that Lily had never expected.

Lily had been keeping a running discussion about James with their mutual friend Remus Lupin. Remus was part of the group that included James, Sirius, and their small, slightly more pathetic friend Peter Pettigrew; together, they called themselves the Marauders. This group had solidly formed around Remus, who suffered from lycanthropy and turned into a wolf once a month at the full moon. His fellow Marauders worked illegally to become animagi so they could keep him company during his transformations.

_I don't want to sound like I'm taking credit, but I feel like becoming an animagi, and seeing me transform every month has done something to James. I think it made him grow up a little_, Remus had written in one of his owls to Lily_. If you had told me two years ago that James Potter would be saving Severus Snape's life, I would have laughed in your face._

_I completely agree,_ Lily wrote back. _And I'm glad he's growing up. I was getting tired of hating him._

_ Pretending like you hated him, you mean._

_ Don't mock me, Remus._

_ Kissy kissy kissy xoxoxox_

_ REMUS JOHN LUPIN! Don't think I couldn't take you twenty-nine days out of the month!_

_ That last one wasn't me! Sorry! I'm at James's right now, Sirius confiscated my owl._

Petunia pushed past Lily and started pushing her laundry in the laundry machine.

"Hey!" Lily yelled. "I was going to use that!"

"Oh," said Petunia, pursing her lips. "I didn't see you there." She didn't look up as she added soap and started the machine.

Lily stormed back into her room, deciding that it would be best to just ignore Petunia and do her laundry later.

Unfortunately for her, Petunia had other plans.

"It's amazing that freaks like you even bother to do laundry," said Petunia, following Lily into her room. "I mean, you're an outcast already, so why bother smelling nicely?"

Lily turned her back on her sister and pulled out one of her schoolbooks. She would have gotten out homework to do, but she had finished it all already in her desperation to distract herself from her life.

"What's that you're reading? _The Freaks Companion_?"

"Get a new joke, Tuney," snapped Lily, glaring at her.

"Do you even have friends where you go? Wasn't that greasy-haired boy your only friend, and now he's not even talking to you."

"Don't talk about what you don't understand," Lily said, her voice shaking with anger.

"I understand that freaks like you shouldn't even exist."

"And I understand that it's people like you that make Severus hate Muggles!" Lily shouted. She had pulled her wand from her desk and pointed it straight at Petunia, who shrieked and ran out of the room.

Lily had had enough. She stared for a moment at the crumpled piece of parchment in her left hand, before dashing over to her closet where she uncovered a large backpack. She began shoving random clothes into the bag, including the dirty ones that she had planned on washing; she ran to the bathroom and dumped all her toiletries on top; lastly, she went back to her room, grabbed her wand and her jacket, and ran downstairs.

"Mum! Dad!" she yelled as she skidded into the living room.

"What is it?" her father asked, slightly alarmed.

"I'm going to a friend's house for a couple days."

"Lily," said her mother, and there was a slight anger to her voice. "I don't remember you asking—"

"I know, and I'm sorry, but it's – er – really important. My friend James needs me, he just – er – broke up with his girlfriend and he's – er – devastated." Lily tried to look as if she had not just pulled that story out of nowhere.

Luckily, as soon as her mother had heard the name "James" her face lit up.

"Ooh, that James Potter?" she asked, suddenly smiling. "I liked him. And his parents."

"Yes! I – er – just got the return owl from his parents and they're fine with it. And I won't be alone, some of my other friends will be there, too."

"How are you expecting to get there?" asked her dad, his eyebrows raised.

"The Knight Bus," said Lily suddenly. "I've used it before."

"And this Knight Bus is safe?"

"Of course, Mum. I'll be fine. Please? I'll be back in a couple days."

Her parents looked at each other before smiling.

"Okay," said her dad, "but be careful. And call us or send us an owl once you get there."

"I will! Love you!" yelled Lily as she crammed her feet into her shoes and nearly ran out the door.

As soon as she was a few blocks down the street, and still slightly fuming from Petunia's tasteless insults, Lily leaned into the road and prepared to flag down the Knight Bus.

"Going somewhere?"

Lily's heart sank as she turned and saw Severus standing a few yards away.

"Out for a nighttime stroll?" she asked, a little viciously.

"Where are you going?"

"It really isn't any of your business."

"If you're running away, I'm going to go tell your parents. They have a right to know, in times like these…"

Lily scoffed loudly. "Look up 'hypocrite' in the dictionary the next time you want to look at yourself, Severus," said Lily, not holding back any of her viciousness this time. "You're a supporter of the reason that it's not safe for people like me to be on the streets alone anymore! Now I suggest you leave, unless you want the Knight Bus to run over you."

"Lily, I'm—"

But Severus's five hundredth empty apology was cut off when Lily raised her wand hand into the air. Severus was forced to jump sideways into a hedge as a loud bang announced the arrival of the purple triple-decker bus.

Lily paid the conductor before he even had the chance to make his speech and threw herself onto one of the beds. The Knight Bus screeched away, leaving Severus in its wake.

There were a few stops before Lily's. The bus jumped from street to street, town to town, and possibly country to country, zooming so fast that it made Lily's stomach sick to look out of the window. She did it anyway, though, to catch sight of the odd objects – street lamps, trash bins, benches, the occasional small house– jumping out of the Knight Bus's way. Lily was launched off of her bed when the bus made a particularly whip-lash inducing abrupt stop. Lily all but hung by one hand from a candelabra that she grabbed onto to stop herself from flying down the bus as the driver called "Godric's Hollow." Swinging her bag over her shoulder, Lily carefully exited the bus, still a little shaky from the wild ride.

With a great bang, the bus disappeared behind her, and Lily was left alone in the starlight. She looked around Godric's Hollow; tiny and quaint as it was at first sight, there was something about the place that made Lily feel – what was it? Energized? Excited?

_Happy_, came the word from the back of Lily's brain. It was the same feeling that she got whenever she was at Hogwarts. The feeling of magic in the air. This wasn't an ordinary Muggle town, Lily just knew that there were wizards here apart from herself and the Potters. Wizards and witches that lived here. And beyond that, Lily had the distinct feeling that there had been wizards and witches living here for a very long time.

_Of course, there's had to be_, thought Lily. _How many Godric's can there by apart from Gryffindor?_

Lily turned on the spot, taking in Godric's Hollow through the settling darkness. There was a cobblestoned town square just behind her. There was also an old church with an ancient looking graveyard that she had the odd urge to investigate further. Instead she looked back at the address in her hand, and started to walk until she found the house with the matching number.

In front of her, corralled by a row of modest hedges and across a small lawn was the Potter house. It wasn't as big as Lily would have expected, given Potter's spoiled nature – the Christmas presents, the best broomsticks, the weekly packages. Yet the Potter residence was an unassertive, welcoming, two story cottage.

Lily didn't have a concept of what time it was, but it was at least eight when she left – what if the Potters went to sleep really early? What if they weren't there at all? _What am I doing?_ thought Lily, suddenly terrified_. Lily Evans, you have gone completely, unequivocally mental. Get a grip, summon the Knight Bus and go home._

_But go home to what?_ said the combating side of her brain. _To Petunia's condescending attitude? To the constant reminder that things can never be the same with Severus? To the train wreck that you've somehow managed to make of your life? _

_It's probably not a good sign that I'm talking to myself like this_, thought Lily, _but touché._

The windows to the right of the door were dimly shining with yellow light, and moving shadows beyond her sightline let Lily know that, at the very least, someone was awake.

Lily took a deep breath, taking in the comforting smell of freshly mown grass and the warm summer night air, and walked up the pathway to the door. "I'm never going to hear the end of this," said Lily, as she knocked on the door quickly three times.

Seconds later, she heard a voice yelling something indiscernible and the door swung open.

"EVANS?" Sirius Black barked excitedly, comically but sincerely shocked to see her. Lily heard a crash, "OW!" and "_Lily_ Evans?" from the other room just before Sirius surprised her equally as much when he didn't hesitate to pick her clear off the ground and pull her into a crushing hug before throwing her over his shoulder, picking up her bag, kicking the door shut, and running with her into the living room.

"Sirius, what the – put me down!"

"NO! You might change your mind and run away! Look what I found!" he yelled happily to people that Lily could not see, as she was too busy hanging upside down, trying and failing to punch Sirius in the back as means of protest.

"Lily?" she heard James's voice yell. "I can't believe you're here!"

"Sirius, put her down," said Remus's voice. He sounded highly amused.

"Wipe that smirk off your face, Remus Lupin, or I'll do it for you!" said Lily.

"It's a little difficult to take you seriously from this angle," said Remus.

"Well, I don't know –"

"Potter, say one more word, and I'll walk out that door as suddenly as I came through it….as soon as I'm on my feet. Sirius, put me _down_!"

"This was fun, we should do it again sometime," said Sirius as he put Lily down. She hit him in the arm a few times for good measure and he had the grace enough to flinch as if it actually hurt, even though Lily knew he barely felt it. Lily was struck by the sudden memory of all the times she wished she had a brother to offset her relationship with Petunia.

Once Lily was upright, she was able to take in the appearances of her friends. James Potter looked the same as ever. His messy black hair refused to lie flat and his glasses framed his hazel eyes, which were particularly bright and happy at the moment. Remus looked better than Lily had seen him in a long time, which she figured was due to the fact that the full moon was a full three weeks away, and now that their O.W.L.s (Ordinary Wizarding Levels) were over with, he had to be much less to be stressed out about. Sirius looked as if he had grown at least another inch, and he had grown some stubble on his chin.

"I can't believe you're here," James said again, overly annunciating.

"Yeah, well, I am," said Lily. "How have you lot been?"

"Fire Whisky is good," grinned Sirius.

"Well, I didn't ask how the Fire Whisky was, but that does explain Sirius's greeting."

"Naw, I just like you. We haven't broken into it yet."

"I can't decide if it scares me that this is you sober," said Lily thoughtfully.

"But you probably wouldn't approve," said James mischievously, gesturing to the bottle.

"Where are your parents?" Lily asked, suddenly fearing turning around and seeing them standing there.

"They're out of town for work."

"Hand me the bottle," said Lily. "It's been a long summer so far."

James stared with a strange sort of admiration at Lily as she poured them each a large glass of Fire Whiskey.


	2. Chapter 2

An hour later, the four of them were sprawled around different parts of the living room. Remus was lying on the couch; Lily was sitting on the floor with her back against the end of the couch; James was sprawled over one of the chairs; and Sirius was lying in front of the fire, greatly resembling the massive shaggy dog that he had the ability to turn into.

"You stormed out of the house because your sister stole the laundry machine?" Remus said, shaking with laughter.

"Well, I couldn't take it anymore!" said Lily, though she was laughing, too. "Between my sister and my ex-best friend, this summer has been total hell. I don't know what I would have done if I didn't have here to come to."

James smiled contentedly to himself from his chair and took another long drink.

"Hey, guys," said Sirius suddenly, sitting up, "I wonder what would happen if I transformed right now." He broke out into loud barks of laughter.

"No, no, no," said Remus, wagging his finger at him. "Friends don't let friends drink and transform illegally into animals. You'd destroy the entire neighborhood."

"Not to mention mark everything as your territory," snorted James.

"I can do that without transforming!" yelled Sirius excitedly.

"No!" Lily, James, and Remus all yelled in unison.

"I wonder how I did on my O.W.L.s," Remus sighed after the laughter had died down.

"No!" yelled James again. "No talking about school!"

"What should we talk about then?" asked Remus.

There was silence for a moment as they pondered.

"Cows," said Sirius ethereally.

"How is Florence?" said Lily without missing a beat, before turning bright red and covering her mouth.

"I cannot believe you just said that!" said James, sitting straight up in his chair, his expression wide with shock and delight.

"I'm sorry, it just sort of slipped out!"

"Don't apologize! That was hilarious, that was, seeing you insult someone else for a change. Besides, I only went out with her on Valentine's Day because no one else would have me." He pulled a long, fake depressed sigh that made them all, including Lily, laugh.

"I rather fancy Emmeline," Sirius declared from the floor. "I may actually pursue it."

"Wow, Black, considering settling down?" scoffed Lily.

"Don't be ridiculous!" exclaimed Sirius, sitting bolt upright. "I have a reputation to uphold!"

"Well, maybe it's about time you did. I mean, you're getting on in years. You'll only be this good looking for so long," said James, and Sirius pounced on him.

"What ever happened with Mary, Remus?" asked Lily, twisting so she could look at him, and ignoring the boys wrestling on the floor behind her.

"Nothing, really. I mean, we went out on Valentine's Day, and then we just sort of…didn't talk about future dating. I like her and everything, but…I don't know if she's that interested. Plus, it's a little difficult to date when I secretly turn into a fully fledged monster every month."

"Yeah, but birds dig an animal," grinned James as Sirius howled, cupping his hands around it mouth.

"The right one will come along eventually, Remus," said Lily, smiling encouragingly at him. "You just have to keep your eyes open."

"You're drunk," said Remus.

"Even so," said Lily, "life works in mysterious ways. She might even be younger than you, but, you know, like, waiting to mature."

"Yeah, she might not even be born yet!" said James.

"Great," said Remus. "So now I'm a pedophile."

" 'Next on Wizards Bewitched: a werewolf who's in love with a two-year-old. Will their love survive?'"

"Hey, Mooney! My favourite cousin has a daughter! She just turned three!"

"I hate you all."

* * *

They talked for hours on James's living room floor, laughing one minute, and hitting on serious conversation the next. They spent a good hour discussing the rise of You-Know-Who. Lily was shocked to discover that all three boys used his real name freely, and she jumped every time they did so.

"It's just a name, for Merlin's sake!" said Sirius when Lily flinched so badly that she spilled her drink on the carpet. "Voldemort Voldemort Voldemort!"

"Would you _stop it_!" Lily hissed.

"Lily, we wouldn't let anything or anyone attack you," said James, looking her in the eye. "You're safe here."

"I don't need you to protect me, Potter," Lily snapped.

There was silence for a moment, and then Lily spoke quietly once more.

"Is anyone safe? Really?" she said. "I mean, there are aspiring Death Eaters inside the walls of Hogwarts now. They could be anywhere and everywhere. I feel defenceless not doing anything about it."

The Marauders stayed silent.

"Is anyone doing anything about it?" Lily demanded, louder than she had intended.

"I hope so," said Sirius. "My brother Regulus may be tiny, but he's powerful and nowhere near as stupid as he looks." He paused for a few moments before saying, "We used to be really close. Me and him. Before he was brainwashed by my parents to become a mindless, blood obsessed zombie."

"I used to be really close to my sister, too. But when I got into Hogwarts and she didn't, instead of admitting that she was hurt, she decided to hate everything about me and magic."

"So she's sort of the opposite of a pure-blood maniac, then. She's a … Muggle maniac," said Sirius, giving a dark laugh.

"I suppose so," said Lily.

"I wish I had siblings sometimes," said James. "That's why I adopted you two as my brothers," he said to Sirius and Remus.

"What about Wormtail?" asked Remus.

"Where is he, anyway?" asked Lily.

"The Netherlands with his parents," said James. "And I don't want to share any genes with Wormtail."

"I don't think I'd look good in Wormtail's jeans," said Sirius, contemplating. "We're shaped very differently."

James sat up very quickly and said, "I think he left a pair here last time he stayed over!" James ran haphazardly up the stairs and came back a few moments later with a pair of short jeans with a wide waste band. And just like that, they moved off from serious issues and shook with laughter as they finished off the bottle of Fire Whiskey and Sirius stepped into Peter's trousers, which were at least a six inches too short for him.

Not long after this, at nearly three in the morning, and twenty minutes after Remus had already fallen asleep, the others began to doze off. The last thing Lily remembered before letting her head fall on the pillow that James had thrown at her was a feeling of pure contentment, something which she had not felt all summer.

* * *

When Lily awoke the following morning, her back was pressed along the bottom of the warm couch, which was moving slightly in and out.

Wait…why was the couch moving?

Lily opened her eyes and immediately realized that she could not be pressed against the couch, as she was facing the couch. Also, couches did not tend to have arms that were hugging her and refusing to let her go.

Lily struggled against Sirius's sleeping form. She looked up quickly at the sound of faint laughter. James was standing above her with his arms crossed. Lily went bright red, and whispered as she tried to pull away from Sirius, "I didn't have a choice in this! I swear!"

"Don't worry. Sirius has the annoying tendency to cuddle with whatever living thing is in his reach while he's sleeping. Trust me, I know from experience," James said. "Also, don't bother whispering. It takes nuclear explosions to wake him up."

"What about Remus?" Lily said as she finally freed herself from Sirius's grip.

"Remus is usually an early riser. Unless he's been drinking. Something we learned New Year's Eve when he slept for nearly fourteen hours. Orange juice?" he asked as they walked into the kitchen.

"Sure," Lily said. This was completely surreal. Lily could not believe that she was sitting in Potter's kitchen, being served orange juice.

"Oh!" said Lily suddenly, after taking a sip out of her glass. "So, remember last night when I was rambling about how my sister wouldn't let me do my laundry?"

James gave a short laugh of comprehension. "C'mon," he said, leading her back through the living room where he picked up her bag and carried it up the stairs. Lily followed, taking in the details of his house.

A complete stranger would be able to tell that James was an only child just by the pictures. James as a baby, his black hair, not fully grown in, still as untidy as ever; James at six, smiling toothily at the camera; James at eleven, pretending like he wasn't nervous right before running through the barrier dividing platform nine and ten, concealing platform 9 ¾. His parents clearly adored him.

"Here we are," said James, gesturing to two large metal machines. They were the same basic shape as Lily's washing machine, but there were many more dials and gadgets, and it was connected to another machine by a short, thick tube. If she were to guess, the second machine would be the dryer. She didn't even have a dryer in her house. Her and her family used drying racks.

"Er…" said Lily, staring at the machine.

"Here," said James, smirking. He opened the door to one of the machines and threw Lily's clothes in ("I want you to know how hard I'm resisting making a joke about me handling one of your bras," "Oh, shut it, Potter.") before messing with a few of the dials. Soon, Lily's laundry was spinning around in soapy water. "And once they're done washing, they'll go through here," James indicated the tube where the washer and dryer were connected, "and dry them for you. It's a lot easier than those stupid Muggle contraptions I saw in Peter's textbook."

"You know how to do laundry?"

"What? I'm not completely incompetent." James grinned as he led Lily back down to the kitchen. "Now, what do you want for breakfast?"

"You cook, too? James Potter, I had no idea you were so domestic."

"I'll choose to take that as a compliment."

Lily watched as James rummaged around in a cupboard. Now that she was fully awake, she could better take in his appearance: James's messy black hair seemed to be even more messy do to sleep, and Lily had never seen him in such laid back Muggle clothes before – a ratty t-shirt and jeans. But there was something else that looked different about him…

"Where are your glasses?" Lily asked, and she realized that she sounded vaguely accusatory.

James looked up at her, his eyebrows pulled together in confusion, but he was still smiling. "They're on the table next to the chair I slept in," he said slowly, the corners of his mouth twitching. "You didn't think I slept in my glasses?"

"No," said Lily, "it's just…strange…that you're not wearing them. I've never seen you without them before."

Shaking his head, he stood up and walked back into the living room. He appeared a few seconds later with his glasses framing his eyes once more. "Better?" he asked, and Lily nodded.

"Your face looks far less – lopsided now."

James nodded slowly, smiling sardonically at her and saying "Cheers," before heading back to the open cupboard, pulling out a box of some sort of mix, and reaching in one of the lower cupboards to pull out a waffle iron.

"Waffles?" he asked.

"You have a waffle iron in your house?" Lily asked in the same voice she did when she discovered that James could both cook and do laundry.

"Why do you keep sounding so shocked?" he said, a twinge of frustration in his voice that Lily found unexpected and a little uncalled for.

"I dunno…I guess I expected a house of pure-blooded wizards to not use laundry machines or waffle irons, not when you could use magic all of the time. Besides, I don't even know any Muggles that own waffle irons!"

"Well, I guess you're right. I mean, I have extreme doubts that Sirius's mother uses a washing machine. But my parents get a kick out of Muggle stuff. The waffle-making stuff is actually from a trip to Belgium we took last summer, so these are going to be the real deal – or as real as they can be from a box." James paused for a moment as he collected various items from the refrigerator, including fresh strawberries, blueberries, and maple syrup. Lily became aware that she had been staring at James as he worked, her mouth slightly open. How had this happened, again? How had she ended up at James Potter's house, being made Belgian waffles?

"Anyway," James continued, unaware of Lily's staring, "I've learned how to do a lot of things the Muggle way. Well, not the complete Muggle way. I still tend to put my spin on things." James turned and pointed his wand at another cupboard, causing a large bowl to fly across the room and into his outstretched arms.

"Hey! Are you trying to get yourself expelled?"

"Lily, the trace is a conspiracy," said James, smiling at her condescendingly. "It only works for Hogwarts students who live in highly condensed Muggle areas, and mostly Muggle-borns. The Ministry of Magic can detect where the spell came from within a certain radius, but they can't tell who did the magic. So they basically monitor the magical activity of the towns that Hogwarts students live it. But because there are a good amount of adult wizards in this area, I can do this," James flicked his wand again and the cupboard door closed, "and they'll never be able to prove it's me."

"But there are plenty of kids with wizard parents at Hogwarts who complain about the underage magic restriction!" argued Lily, angry that such a loophole existed that went against her favour and toward Potter's.

"Yeah, well, parents are stricter than the law. Most of those kids are yelled at by their parents if they do magic outside of school. And most of them don't know about the loophole." James smirked, "Both my mum and dad work at the Ministry."

"And they just let you do magic whenever you want?" Lily asked incredulously.

"Well…no," said James, the smirk falling off his face as he poured waffle batter into the iron. "I think my dad wouldn't mind me doing the occasional magic, but my mum would be furious. They spoil me in a lot of ways, my parents, but my mum doesn't think I should be allowed to do what other kids can't just because I know how to fool the system. So I just cast spells occasionally when they're not around."

"This…loophole," said Lily slowly. "Does it work for anyone here?"

James smirked again. "Go for it."

Lily ran to get her wand, nearly tripping over Sirius in her rush. When she got back to the kitchen, James was opening another cupboard to get plates. "Here, let me!" said Lily, summoning the plates out of the cupboard and guiding them gracefully onto the table. "I always forget how much I miss this!" Once the table was set, Lily tapped her head with her wand and felt her hair being immediately brushed through. She smiled widely at James.

"So easily amused," James sighed as he turned back to the waffles.

"You're one to talk," smirked Lily.

"I smell food."

Sirius had just emerged, tousle-haired and droopy eyed. Remus followed not far behind him, rubbing his head, his eyes screwed shut.

"Head hurt, Remus?" asked James, bringing a plate stacked with waffles and setting it in the middle of the table. Remus nodded and moaned slightly.

"I can help with that," said Lily. "That is, if James has anything of the actual wizarding variety in this house."

"Ha ha," said James sarcastically. "Potion ingredients are in the cupboard to the right of the sink. Why?"

Lily walked across the kitchen and opened the cupboard to find a variety of different plants and potion ingredients. Lily pulled out a handful of bottles, standing on her tiptoes and rummaging through to find certain ones, making sure to keep her back to the boys as she worked so that they couldn't see exactly what she was concocting. "Sugar?" she asked James, and he grabbed it off the table to bring over to her. Lily used her wand to blend all of the ingredients together in a glass.

"What's that?" asked Remus cautiously as Lily brought the potion over to him.

"It's for your headache," said Lily, forcing the glass into his hands. "The sugar helps, but I'd still try to drink it in one gulp if I were you."

"What's in it?" asked Sirius, staring apprehensively at the greenish liquid as Remus drank it down quickly, coughing a little as he finished the dregs.

"Don't ask," said Lily. "The important thing is that it works."

As they chatted idly over breakfast, an owl came swooping through the open kitchen window and landed in front of James, a newspaper in its beak. James took the paper, offered the owl some water, and went to get a Knut in order to pay for the delivery.

Remus picked up the paper, unfolded it, and immediately choked on his orange juice.

"What's wrong, Moony?" asked Sirius, patting him on the back as James returned with the money. The owl flew off as soon as James dropped the coin into the pouch attached to its foot.

Remus pointed wide-eyed at the paper. Alarmed, Lily picked it up and read aloud to the others:

* * *

**Hogwarts to Find Yet Another Teacher for Defence Against the Dark Arts**

_The Hogwarts position of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher may very well be cursed after all, writes Rita Skeeter, special correspondent. After years of having to replace teacher after teacher for this job, it seemed that Hogwarts had at last found a stable teacher in Oakden Hobday, who managed to make it through the year in one piece._

_Unfortunately, that is more than what can be said of Hobday now. Last night, Ministry officials received several calls of an extreme disruption of the peace at Hobday's place of residence at approximately one o'clock in the morning, as well as reports of several masked figures._

_By the time the Ministry arrived, Hobday's home was in shambles, as was Hobday himself, along with his wife. Hanging above their home was the now familiar mark of You-Know-Who: the emerald skull with a serpent in its mouth. (For those unaware, the Ministry has now officially begun to call the sign the 'Dark Mark')._

_When asked about what they were going to do to keep our families safe, an unidentified ministry official had only this unhelpful piece of information to say: "The Ministry would like to remind everyone to never under any circumstances enter a place in which the Dark Mark is hovering without the company of a qualified Ministry official."_

_As always, please report any suspicious behaviour, as well as sightings of the Dark Mark or any suspected Death Eaters (You-Know-Who supporters, usually dressed in black and wearing masks) to the Ministry straight away._

* * *

Lily stared wide eyed up from the paper at the boys across from her. James had gone ashen in colour; Remus had his face in his hands; and Sirius's mouth was hanging open.

"I can't believe it," Remus said, lifting his face out of his hands.

"I feel horrible," said Lily. "I hardly even knew him. And I complained so much about his assignments."

"Me, too," said James quietly.

"I knew something like this was going to happen after he wasn't sacked."

"Sirius!" Lily scolded.

"What, you didn't?" Sirius asked of all of them. "The job is jinxed, you all know it is."

"Well, we don't _know_," said Lily quietly. "It could all be some sort of coincidence." Even as Lily said it, she realised how ridiculous that idea was.

"Well, it looks like our sixth year at Hogwarts is going to begin like any other," sighed James, starting to clear the dishes and placing them into the sink, where they began to wash themselves. "With a new Defence professor."

"Not like any other year," said Sirius, attempting to lighten the mood. "Lily Evens just spent the night in James Potter's house!"

"Okay, it won't be the _exact _same," said James, grinning over at Lily.

Lily tried to smile back, but she could only manage a small mouth twitch. This would be the first year at Hogwarts that she would not be best friends with Severus Snape. It was true that, as the situation was, she did not want to be best friends with this Severus anymore. However, Lily believed she would have given just about anything to go back to the way things were when they were eleven, emerging into a new and exciting adventures together – a time when Severus did not care that Lily was a Muggle-born.

But they could not go back. And Lily did not want to be eleven again. Truthfully, Lily was beginning to love the person that she had become; no longer was she the uptight, somewhat snobby girl she had been when she first entered Hogwarts. She was growing into a confident, outspoken woman who could stand up for herself.

"Change can be good," said Lily firmly.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:Thank you all for the lovely reviews! They truly make my day!**

As it was a beautiful day, the group decided to pack some food and head into the country for the afternoon. Lily was rummaging through the Potters' cabinets, picking and choosing items they would take with them, when James re-entered the room, his arms full with four broomsticks.

"Where did you get all those?" said Lily in mild shock. They were all very nice brooms.

"Well, this one belongs to Sirius," said James, throwing one of the brooms at Sirius, who had been sitting on one of the countertops.

"And the other three?" asked Lily, her eyebrows raised.

"They're mine," said James, looking a little bashful, then turning almost immediately defensive. "This was my old broom, and this was my spare! And this," his defensiveness turned to awe, "is the Nimbus 1001 that my parents bought me for Christmas."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Why on earth do you need three brooms?"

"For occasions like this," said James. "So do you want the Nimbus 1000 or the Cleansweep Four? If I may offer some advice—"

"Don't be daft, I'll take the Nimbus. The Cleansweeps are good and all, if you're good with mediocre acceleration, but the turning is abysmal in comparison to the Nimbus. Have you ever seen a Cleansweep turn 360 degrees in the air at a fixed point?" Lily snatched the Nimbus out of James's left hand. "And I like a fast broom."

Both James and Sirius were staring at Lily with their mouths hanging open.

"But—you—I—"

"Use your words, Potter."

"You—hate Quidditch."

"No, I don't," said Lily, glaring. "I hate how arrogant you look playing Quidditch, Potter. I can hardly get through a match watching you show off like that. Sometimes I wonder if you're playing Quidditch or trying out for the circus."

James almost looked hurt. "Ouch, Evens. And here I thought things were going to change this year."

"They are. This year I'm not going to pent up my anger until I explode. I'm going to let it out in small doses."

"Wonderful."

Remus came around the corner with his toothbrush sticking sideways out of his mouth. "Ugh, I'm never going to get the taste of Firewhiskey out of my mouth," he said after he spit into the sink. "Are we ready to go already?"

"Yeah, and Lily stole the Nimbus and left you with the Cleansweep," said Sirius, swinging off the counter.

"What's the difference?"

They walked into the trees behind James's house for a few minutes before taking off, as there were Muggle families that lived in James's neighborhood. After about ten minutes, they reached a small clearing. Remus secured the basket of food to his broom, and Lily, James, and Sirius all prepared for takeoff.

James grinned, "On your marks," Lily bent her knees in preparation, "get set—"

"Wait, we're racing?" said Sirius in confusion, his leg only half way over his broom.

But too late: "Go!"

James and Lily kicked off the ground so hard that they accidently showered the other two with dirt. They rocketed up toward the canopy overhead. With a crunch, they emerged from the branches into the bright sunlight. Lily felt the wind on her face as it pushed back her hair and made her eyes water. Her smile was hurting her face; she hadn't flown in months, and she had forgotten how fond she was of it.

It was very clear that she was nowhere near as gifted as James, however. He circled around Lily, twirled, rolled, and dived. It would have been very annoying had he not looked so boyishly happy. Lily was also at a disadvantage in their "race" in that she had no idea where they were going. On a few occasions, James would turn sharply and lead Lily in a completely different direction. Every time he did this, he would look back with a grin on his face as if expecting to see her fallen behind, and his grin turned to a look of surprise every time he discovered she was still with him.

Soon they were flying over a small lake. James dived, and this time Lily followed him. James hovered mere inches over the water, his legs stretching the length of the broom. Lily again followed suit, and nearly lost her balance. James laughed and she reached down as he looked into his own watery reflection and splashed at him. Laughing gleefully, Lily pulled out of the dive, only to be pursued by James.

Lily swerved and twisted as best as she could, but she was no match for James. He caught up with her in less than a minute. Flying directly in front of her so that Lily almost had to stop, James spat a great deal of water into her face. "Potter!" Lily shrieked, but there was amusement in her voice.

James began to dive again, and Lily followed, flattening herself on her broom, catching up with him with every second. Ten feet away from the ground, Lily did possibly the most reckless thing she had ever done. Gripping her hands tightly on the front of her broom, she lifted her legs and placed both of her feet on the small wooden broom handle. When she was directly behind James, still five feet from the ground, she pounced.

Lily and James hit the ground hard, Lily kneeling on James's back, pushing his face into the dirt. "Take that, Potter!" yelled Lily through her laughter. Then she rolled over onto the grass, breathing heavy and looking up into the clear blue sky.

James rolled over a few seconds later, and even though he had just spit out a great amount of dirt, he, too, was laughing.

"I'm honestly impressed, Evans," he said, still wiping dirt from his mouth. "You are not completely and utterly rubbish at flying."

"Cheers," said Lily. "This is exactly what I needed, you know."

"A day with a strong, handsome, sexy—"

"I suppose a day with Sirius helps, too."

"Evans, sometimes I think you are pure evil."

"But I was referring to time away from my sister and, well—you know," said Lily, trailing off. She did not quite understand why it hurt so much to say Severus's name.

"You would make a decent player," said James, pushing himself up from the ground and offering a hand to Lily to pull her up. "Ever think about trying out?"

"For Quidditch?" snorted Lily. "Of course not! And thanks for the flattery, but I'm really not all that good. And I don't work well in teams, at least of the sporting variety."

"Suit yourself," James shrugged, shouldering the two brooms as Remus and Sirius finally caught up with them.

"Is this where we're landing, then?" said Sirius, looking around the large deserted field that Lily had pounced James into.

"I guess so," shrugged James, grinning.

Remus landed on the ground next to Sirius with a thud so ungracefully that he fell to the ground.

"Who's up for a game of two on two?" said Sirius, kicking into the air again.

"Oh, come on," whined Remus breathlessly. "I just landed."

"It's ok," said Lily, flopping on the ground next to Remus. "Make it one on one. We'll ref."

James kicked off after Sirius, and Lily grabbed the Quaffle James had packed away in the picnic basket, while Remus laid out a blanket for them to lie on as spectators.

"Captains, shake hands!" Lily yelled. James and Sirius hovered next to each other in the air, both trying to pull the other off their broom by the hand. Lily trilled her tongue in the best impersonation of a whistle that she could and threw the Quaffle into the air.

"Wait!" yelled James, after catching the large red ball and easily dodging around Sirius. "Where am I aiming to throw this?"

Thinking quickly, Lily ran to an area just past James and drew a large circle in the dirt with her shoe. She did the same on Sirius's side. "You're goal is to drop the Quaffle into that circle!"

What transpired next was one of the most entertaining and outrageous game of one-on-one, airborne basketball that had ever occurred. It was nearly impossible to drop the Quaffle into the dirt rings without it bouncing out again, and the only way to block your opponent from dropping it in was to fly directly underneath and get hit in the head with the ball. After nearly an hour of this, Lily, in a fit of hysterics, collected as many apples as she could hold from the ground around the surrounding trees and began chucking them at James and Sirius.

"What are you doing?" James yelled, barely dodging an apple.

"I'm a bludger!" yelled Lily, aiming an apple perfectly and hitting James in the square of his back. Abandoning their game of air-basketball, James began to dive-bomb Lily, until she was forced to pick up her discarded Nimbus and begin swatting at James like an over-sized bee.

Exhausted but thoroughly amused, the group had a satisfying lunch sprawled out on the grass. All too soon, they were mounting their brooms once more and heading back to the Potter household.

"So how long are you staying for?" James asked Lily as nonchalantly as he could as they walked up the steps to his front door.

"I don't know," said Lily honestly. "It was a very spur of the moment decision to come here. And I don't want to feel like I'm intruding. I'll probably go back tomorrow."

James looked crestfallen. Noting this, Lily added quickly, "But I will come back. That is, if I'm welcome to—"

"Of course, yeah!" said James, perking up. "The door is always open! Well, figuratively anyway," said James, fishing a key out of his jacket pocket.

"We're planning on going to Diagon Alley the day after we get our letters," said Sirius. "Jump on the Knight Bus as soon as you get yours."

"Or sooner, even," said James hopefully.

James flicked his wand as they walked through the front door and immediately the lights turned on. He collected the brooms from the others and ran upstairs to put them in their rightful place before remerging by sliding down the banister. He had a small silver case under his arm.

"Anyone up for some chess?"

Lily developed a theory during that night that wizard chess could reveal a decent amount about a person's personality. Remus for instance, upon first taking up James's offer of a chess game, thought long and hard before directing even his pawns into battle. This worked well when playing against the recklessness of Sirius, who would never take longer than three seconds to decide on a move and go for it. James would think about his strategy, but would always end up choosing the riskier and more exciting move. It seemed that a good game was more important to him than actually winning. Lily would take whatever sacrifices necessary to save her king piece, including throwing her queen into sometimes mortal peril.

Lily and Remus could have conceivably continued with chess for a few more hours, but Sirius was already getting antsy after the fifth game. He didn't seem to be able to do the same thing over a long period of time without getting immensely bored and frustrated.

"Sirius needs to be fed," said James, looking over from his game with Lily to see Sirius hanging upside down off the side of the couch and trying to lick his nose. "He goes mental if he isn't fed every few hours."

"What are you going to surprise me with this time?" said Lily. She had been trying to sound sarcastic, but she was genuinely interested.

"Actually, I was thinking we could just order pizza," said James shrugging.

"Make it Chinese!" said Sirius excitedly, rolling off the couch and hitting the floor with a surprising thud.

"If we get pizza, we get the guy on the vespa," said Remus.

"Pizza it is!" said Sirius.

"Really? Ordering food?"

"Well, I guess I didn't disappoint you," smirked James. "You sound surprised once more."

"I am, but I was hoping for something a little more fancy," said Lily.

"Lily, Lily, Lily," sighed Sirius, walking over to her and slinging his arm around her. "You have never ordered food in the wizarding world, have you?"

"No," said Lily perking up. "How's it different?"

"Well, there's this device – you push these numbers in a certain order, then talk into it –"

"You know, you guys are complete bastards," said Lily, ducking out under Sirius's arm and pushing him back onto the couch. "Shit!" Lily exclaimed suddenly.

"What?" said James, picking up the receiver of a phone on the table next to the arm chair. "Are you lactose intolerant or something?"

"No, I forgot to call my parents! Can I borrow that?" James handed over the phone and Lily dialled homed quickly. "Hi, Mum. Yeah I know, sorry, I was distracted. Yeah, completely devastated, but he's feeling better now. We listened to Joni Mitchell and he had a good cry. Yep, I'll tell him. See you soon, love you."

Lily hung up the phone and handed it back to James who was looking at her with his eyebrows furrowed.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"Oh, well, I needed an excuse to come visit you so suddenly so I told my mum that you just got ditched by your girlfriend."

"And now she thinks I'm curled up on the couch crying to Joni Mitchell?"

"Pretty much," said Lily, smirking as Sirius and Remus burst into laughter. "Now, where were we? Something about being boring and ordering a pizza?

"I promise we'll make it up to you once the delivery guy gets here," said Sirius mischeviously.

"What does he mean?" Lily asked, turning to Remus.

"We – er – sort of have this tradition when we get delivery…"


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So I anyone who has read my last story knows that I love adding in actual JKR text into my stories. It makes them feel more legitimate somehow. So there's a snippet you may recognise in this chapter, but I hope you read through it anyway, even though I'm sure it's very familiar by now. After all, it is a fantastic story.**

**All J.K. Rowling text is in italics. Here's the proper citation:**

**Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. New York: Arthur A. Levine, 2007. Print.**

Lily had to keep reminding herself that they were not at school and prefect duties did not apply to her as they waited for the delivery person. Try as she might, she could not get any details out of James, Sirius, or Remus.

"You'll see," James said mischievously. It made Lily nervous. However, crouched outside in the bushes with James and Sirius while Remus waited to open the door for the pizza delivery person, Lily felt something odd that she had never quite previously experienced – she felt rebellious. And she liked it.

"Okay," James whispered as the Vespa carrying their dinner came into sight on the road. "Lily, on the count of three, cast wingardium leviosa –"

"Why me?" asked Lily, suddenly terrified.

"Don't worry, we all have our part to play," said Sirius, rising just a bit from his crouched position.

"Trust me," said James, and his smirk made his face so bright that Lily could not say no. "On three, point at the Vespa. One…two…THREE!"

Lily whispered her spell just as James whispered a different spell next to her. She didn't catch what it was, but she heard the motor of the bike kick to life just as it rose into the air. The pizza delivery guy looked back just in time to see Sirius rushing from the bushes and jumping on the bike, which immediately zoomed away into the air.

"Damn it! One of these times I'll learn to take the bloody keys with me!" yelled the pizza delivery guy. Lily did not understand – this guy had just seen a teenage boy fly away on his Vespa. Why wasn't he running away screaming?

Lily's confusion continued as James straightened up from the bushes laughing. "Sorry, Ludo," said Remus who was supporting himself on the door frame. "If we had known that it was you coming, we may have given you a break."

"Wait," said Ludo, turning in confusion from Remus to James. "If Sirius is on the bike, and you're in there, who cast the second spell?"

"You know our tricks too well by now," said James.

"He's a wizard?" Lily hissed, as if still afraid he might overhear.

"Of course," said James, laughing. "You didn't think we'd do that to a Muggle? And it's okay to come out, you know. Ludo won't bite."

Lily, who was still crouched in the bushes, finally stood up straight, brushing herself off.

"I don't believe it," said Ludo. "Lily Evans? At the Potter house?"

Now that she could see him clearly, her sight no longer constricted by branches, Lily realised that she recognised the delivery guy. "You go to Hogwarts," said Lily rather thickly. "You play on the Hufflepuff Quidditch team."

"Not anymore," sighed Ludo. "I graduated. Now it's pizza delivering for me, until something better comes along."

"It will," said Remus, handing Ludo some money and relieving him of the pizza. Lily noticed that it was Muggle money that he handed over.

"I'm confused," said Lily as Sirius came riding back on the Vespa (this time on the ground). "How did you know that he wouldn't be a Muggle if you ordered from a Muggle company?"

"The shop's owned by wizards," said Ludo. "There are wizards in this area, but there are many more Muggles, so it's more beneficial for them to masquerade as normal pizza shop owners."

"Lily's charm lasted longer than ever!" exclaimed Sirius as he pulled up next to them. "But it still ran out before I could reach the pizza shop roof. One of these days," Sirius sighed dreamily.

"And hopefully I won't be working that day," said Ludo, though he seemed to find the whole situation greatly amusing. He had a huge smile on his face and kept bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Well, it's been great seeing you all again, but I've got to get back to my shift."

"Yeah, I'm sure we'll see you again, Ludo," said James, shaking his hand. "But listen – you're a great Beater. You really should try out for something professional."

"You think?" said Ludo with a gleam in his eye. "Well, again, must be off." And with that, he swung his leg over his Vespa, started the engine, and took off.

"It was nice seeing Ludo," said Remus as he led them all back inside. He put the pizza on the dining room table as James pointed his wand at the cupboard and plates zoomed toward them, skidding to a halt at each separate place in front of them.

"Yeah, it was always fun playing him on the field," said James.

"And he never reports us for doing under age magic," said Sirius fondly.

"The things you guys get away with," sighed Lily.

"You mean the things we get away with, Evans," said James.

"Yeah," said Remus. "You are officially a part of the Marauders' rebellious ways."

"What will I ever do with myself," said Lily.

"You can't say you didn't have fun," said Sirius, taking a large slice of pizza from the box.

"You're right," said Lily after a small pause when she debated whether or not she should lie. "But that doesn't mean that I'm going to become a regular member."

"Suit yourself," said Sirius, shrugging. James was looking curiously at Lily over his glass of water. Lily busied herself with her food.

"So," she said. "Who do you think is going to become the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher?"

"Maybe Dumbledore will do it," said Sirius. "I mean, he's a genius. And he'd be a right kick in the classroom."

"Yeah, but he's the headmaster," said Remus. "I'm sure he has enough to do without taking on the entire Defence Against the Dark Arts curriculum."

"Whoever it is, I hope it's someone who really knows what they're doing. We're going to need it, and I'm not just talking about so we can get good grades," said James.

"This is going to lead to You-Know-Who again, isn't it?" said Lily.

"I dare you to say it," said James, staring her down.

"Say what?" said Lily, but she had a nagging feeling she knew what he meant.

"Voldemort."

Lily gave an involuntary shudder. Six months ago, had James dared her, she probably would have done it in a heartbeat. But that was before the Death Eaters had killed her neighbours, the Browns. That act suddenly brought everything much closer to Lily than she would have liked to ever see it.

"No," said Lily simply and very quietly. Upon seeing her reaction, James didn't push the subject. "So," Lily began weakly, trying to change the subject. "We're all taking Defence. Assuming we get the O.W.L.s. What else are you interested in keeping?"

As it turned out, James, besides wanting to be an international Quidditch star, was also interested in working as an Auror for the Ministry. "I mean, it'll probably never happen," said James, modest for the first time that Lily had ever seen him. "But I figured I'd take the core classes just in case. And I'm keeping Arithmancy, just 'cause I like it."

"I'm taking what James it taking," said Sirius simply.

"How about you, Remus?" asked Lily. "What are you aiming for?"

Remus looked down at the pizza crust on his plate and stayed quiet for a few seconds. Then he said, in the tone of someone who had already given up, "Well – I mean – there are a lot of things I'd like to do –"

Lily continued to look confused, but then Sirius said in a voice of forced calm, as the subject matter clearly angered him, "If there's any bastard out there who won't hire you, they don't deserve you."

"Oh!" said Lily, suddenly understanding, and feeling a pang of something she identified as both sympathy and guilt in her stomach. She never really considered how difficult it would be for Remus to find a job with his condition.

"I have to be realistic, Padfoot," said Remus. "There's absolutely no legislation preventing discrimination against werewolves in the workplace. Trust me, I've done the research. But anyway, I was thinking, maybe, if there was a position at Hogwarts – I mean, Dumbledore made the exception for me to go to school, maybe –" he trailed off.

James and Sirius shot a quick look at each other across the table before James said, "Let's go in the living room. It's much more comfortable there."

"What about the dishes?" asked Lily.

"Don't worry about it, I'll get them in the morning," said James, his back to them as he left the room. "C'mon, Remus, you know where I'm going with this." He walked into the living room, started a fire in the fireplace with his wand, and sat down on the rug. The other three followed suit.

James then conjured four pointed sticks and summoned a large bag of marshmallows from the direction of the kitchen. "Dessert," said James, handing each of the others a stick and spearing a marshmallow and waving it in the flames.

"I haven't roasted marshmallows in ages," said Lily.

"I've never roasted marshmallows," said Sirius. "Muggle traditions are weird."

"Says the guy whose parents mount elf heads on their wall," said James.

"Not my idea," retorted Sirius.

"I used to love when my dad told stories around the fire," said Remus, smiling sadly.

As if on cue, James started.

"_There were once three brothers who were travelling along a long and winding road at midnight,"_ said James, staring into the fire. Lily noted how the flames danced in the reflection on his glasses, giving him an eerie look. _"In time the brothers reached a river too deep to wade through and too treacherous to swim across. However, these brothers were learned in the magical arts and so they simply waved their wands and made a bridge appear over the treacherous water. They were half way across it when they found their path blocked by a hooded figure."_ James looked up and grinned mysteriously_. "And Death spoke to them."_

Lily would have interrupted, questioning the ability for Death to take a humanoid form, but she was honestly too captivated by the story.

James continued_. "He was angry that he had been cheated out of three new victims, as travellers usually drowned in the river. But Death was cunning. He pretended to congratulate the three brothers on their magic and told them they each earned a prize for having been clever enough to evade him. So the oldest brother, who was a combative man, asked for a wand more powerful than any in existence, a wand which must always win duels for its owner, a wand worthy of a wizard who had conquered Death. And so Death crossed to an elder tree on the banks of the river, fashioned a wand from a branch that hung there, and gave it to the eldest brother._

"_Then the second brother, who was an arrogant man, decided that he wanted to humiliate Death still further and asked for the power to recall others from Death. So Death picked up a stone from the river bank and gave it to the second brother and told him that the stone would have the power to bring back the dead._

"_And then Death asked the third and youngest brother what he would like. The youngest brother was the humblest and also wisest of the brothers, and he did not trust Death. So he asked for something that would enable him to go forth from that place without being followed by Death, and Death, most unwillingly, handed over his own cloak of invisibility._

"_Death stood aside and allowed the three brothers to continue on their way. And they did so, talking with wonder of the adventure they had had. In due course, the three brothers separated to their own destinations. The first brother travelled on for a week or more, and reaching a distant village, sought out a wizard with whom he had a quarrel. Naturally, with the Elder wand as his weapon, he could not fail to win the proceeding duel, his enemy lying dead upon the floor. The oldest brother travelled to an inn where he began boasting loudly of the powerful wand he had snatched from Death himself. That very night, another wizard crept up on the oldest brother as he lay wine-sodden on his bed. The thief took the wand and for good measure, slit the oldest brother's throat. And so Death took the first brother for his own._

"_Meanwhile, the second brother travelled to his own home, where he lived alone. Here he took out the stone that had the power to return the dead," _at this James picked up a small decorative stone from a jar on a low table next to the mantel and began flipping it in his palm_, "and turned it thrice in his hand. To his amazement and delight, the girl who he had once hoped to marry before her untimely death appeared at once before him. Yet she was sad and cold, separated from him as by a veil."_ James turned his gaze to Lily, and although the eye contact frightened her, she did not break it. _"Though she had returned to the mortal world, she did not truly belong there and suffered. Finally, the second brother driven mad with hopeless longing, killed himself so as truly to join her. And so Death took the second brother for his own."_

Turning his gaze upon the other two, James continued. _"But though Death searched for the third brother for many years, he was never able to find him. It was only when he had attained a great age that the youngest brother finally took off the cloak of invisibility and gave it to his son. And then he greeted Death as an old friend and went with him gladly. And, equals, they departed this life."_

A long silence followed the end of James's story.

"That was—chilling," whispered Lily after a few minutes. "What was it?"

"You've never heard of Beedle?" said Sirius.

"Have you ever heard of the Grimm brothers?" asked Remus of Sirius in Lily's defence. "Cultural divide."

"So, he's a story teller?" asked Lily.

"_The_ story teller," said James. "He wrote all my favourite tales as a kid. 'The Tale of the Three Brothers' is my absolute favourite though."

"As if we couldn't tell by the fact that you have it memorised," said Remus.

James stared into the fire and smiled. "I used to make my dad tell me that story every night before I went to sleep."

"That explains a lot," said Sirius.

"I think it's sweet," said Lily quietly. "Besides, I'm not one to talk. My favourite faerie tale was Cinderella, the Grimm version. There's amputation and eye gouging in that one."

"Wow, Muggles are sick," said Sirius. "Even by our standards."

Lily curled her arms around her legs and put her chin on top of her knees, lost in thought about the story James had just told them. "Which would you have, then?" she asked.

"What, you mean between the wand, the stone, and the cloak?" asked Remus. "That's a good question."

"The wand," said Sirius. "No doubt."

"Even though he was the first one killed?" said Lily.

"Yeah, but only cause he went about it all wrong. He went rubbing it in other people's faces. It wasn't the wand that got him killed, it was his mouth."

"I guess," said Remus. "But still, I don't know if I'd want that kind of power. I'd like to think that I'd take the cloak."

"I already have one, and I quite like it," said James. "I haven't really lost anyone to make me consider wanting the stone. And I have a special bond with my wand – not an innuendo, Sirius," said James when Sirius opened his mouth to retort. "Anyway, so I don't know. Maybe I wouldn't take any of them. Maybe I'd ask for something else entirely."

"Like what?" asked Remus.

James thought for a moment.

"Like the best racing broom the world has ever seen!" he said enthusiastically. Sirius agreed wholeheartedly. Lily rolled her eyes.

"What about you, Lily?" asked James.

Lily would be lying to herself if she didn't admit that the Elder wand was tempting, but in the end...

"I'd want the cloak," said Lily decisively.

"You lot are boring," said Sirius, lounging back against the couch.

"What do you want to do then, Padfoot? Should I take you for a walk?" said James.

"No," said Sirius. "I just feel like lying here, but I want something to entertain me."

"I've got just the thing," said James. He disappeared upstairs for a few minutes, and when he returned he was hovering a small record player in front of him and carrying a box full with albums. "Yes, Evans," James said before Lily could say anything. "We have Muggle music, too."

"Hey, Joni Mitchell!" exclaimed Lily, going through the stack of records.

"How'd that get in there?" said James, snatching the record away and shoving it under the couch. "Here you are, Padfoot," he said after looking through the pile himself. "Your favourite." He held up the sleeve for The Rolling Stone's "Let it Bleed."

They sprawled around the living room once more. Long periods would go by when they didn't talk, but just listened to the music, or sung quietly along. Remus had a rather lovely voice. Sirius not so much, but that didn't stop him from singing his favourite parts loudly and proudly.

Still, both Sirius and Remus, who were sitting at opposite ends of the couch, were passed out before the record was even finished with side one.

"I swear, every time," said James, throwing a blanket over Remus and Sirius. "They're like children."

Lily wasn't sure what to do. She hated being alone with James because she was always nervous about what to say. James was used to bouncing witty repartee off of Sirius and Remus, and yeah, Lily liked to join in. But without the other two there, there wouldn't be anything to fill the potentially awkward silences. When they were in a group, there was no pressure on Lily, and so she could be naturally funny. But one-on-one was a different story.

"Evans, you ok?" said James, waving a hand in front of her face.

"Yeah, sorry, I zoned out there for a minute."

James looked at her for a few moments, as if he were sizing her up.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" he said after a little while.

Lily swallowed. Her mouth was dry. "Yeah, alright."

The night air was pleasantly cool. A light breeze tugged at Lily's hair and tee-shirt. She crossed her arms not because she was cold but because they suddenly felt awkward dangling at her side. She looked around at the little houses surrounding her. Godric's Hollow looked like a town frozen in time. Above them, the sky was clear and the stars bright.

"I like it here," Lily said quietly. "It's nice. Comforting. It reminds me of something, but I can't quite think what."

"It reminds me of something straight out of a story," said James, playing with his sleeve.

"Like the Three Brothers," said Lily, smiling.

"Exactly," said James. His voices sounded strange. "Lily?" he said after a while of walking in silence.

"Yeah?" Lily said quickly.

James smiled. "Wanna know a secret?"

Lily nodded. She suddenly felt eleven years old again as James flashed her his toothy grin and motioned for her to follow him. They walked through the town square, their footsteps click-clacking into the night. James led Lily to the right, toward the small church. Confused but intrigued, Lily stayed close.

"Just through here," said James, opening the gate to the cemetery.

"This is a little grim, James," said Lily, but she followed him anyway.

They wove through the gravestones. Lily stopped every now and again to get a closer look at the names, which dated back centuries. "How old is this place?" Lily said to herself.

"Old," said James, making her jump. She hadn't realised that he was behind her. "Over here," he said, gesturing for her to come stand next to him. James leaned down and dusted off the name on the grave in front of them, but stood in front of it so that Lily couldn't yet see the name.

"The tale I told you earlier, there's another part," said James. Lily didn't even try to conceal her wonder as she hung on James's every word. "The brothers – they were real. Or so many people think. The brothers' last name was Peverell."

James stepped aside to reveal the name on the gravestone.

"Ignotus Peverell," Lily whispered, reading the name aloud. She turned to James. "But you said you were going to tell me a secret. How's it a secret if that's what so many people believe?"

"Because – I'm related to him. Ignotus Peverell is my great-great-great-however-many-greats grandfather."

"No way!" said Lily, leaning down for a closer look at the gravestone. Then she straightened up, a sceptical look on her face. "Are you pulling my leg because I'm an innocent and naive Muggle-born?"

"No, I swear!" said James. "Look it up in the library when we get to Hogwarts! The Tale of the Three Brothers is supposed to be inspired by the Peverells! And I can show you my family tree if you want!"

Lily's eyes suddenly went wide. "Your cloak!" she said in a whisper, as if afraid of someone overhearing. "Is it – ? It can't be – ?" Lily stammered.

James grinned and shrugged, hands shoved in his pocket as he gazed down at the grave. "Ignotus was the youngest. He would have been the one to take the cloak. And it's been in my family for longer than anyone can remember."

"So," began Lily, a little scared at what the answer would be, "Death?"

"No," said James, shaking his head and looking back up at her. "I mean, I love the story and the drama of it all, but I'm pretty sure it's just a metaphor. Most everyone who subscribes to the Peverell brothers theory also believes that they were just really talented, intelligent wizards who invented the three objects in the story."

Lily paused. "But why haven't you told the others?" she asked, gesturing back to James's house, where Sirius and Remus still slept. "Why is it a secret?

"Sirius already takes the mickey out of me enough for being so invested in a faerie tale. And I can't tell Remus anything without telling Sirius. So, can I trust you?"

"Yes," said Lily, straightening up and looking at James.

After a few moments James broke her gaze. "It's getting late. Should we go back?"

"Yeah, I guess so," said Lily.

They walked back to the house in silence.

"If you want to sleep in a proper bed tonight, we have a guest room upstairs," said James. "Unless you want to cuddle with Sirius on the floor again."

"Ha ha," said Lily.

"I guess I'll head up to bed then," said James awkwardly.

He was half-way to the stairs when Lily said, "Or you could tell me a couple more of these tales from Beedle."

James stopped in his tracks and turned slowly to look at her. His face broke into a wide smile.

"There is this great one about a wizard and his hairy heart."


	5. Chapter 5

James and Lily sat cross-legged across from each other on James's bed. The only light was coming from a handful of candles floating around them. "It makes for a spookier setting," said James defensively when Lily had raised her eyebrows at him. It was true; the candlelight flickered strangely off of James's glasses as he recounted the terrible story of the "Warlock's Hairy Heart," complete with theatrical voices. He even managed to make Lily jump a few times when he raised his voice unexpectedly during the scary parts. When he got to the end, however, Lily had gone very stiff. James allowed silence to fall after the last sentence for dramatic effect, but after a minute said, "Evans?"

"Your storytelling skills are impressive," she said. There was something off in her voice. Her face was mostly concealed in shadow. "Nice use of different voices."

"I'm told I would do a great Lady M," said James. "Lily, are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm..." Lily's voice trailed off, but she stayed sitting where she was. Then, in an odd voice, "Funny, isn't it?"

"What?" said James quietly.

"That she knew. The witch in the story. She knew something was wrong. With the warlock. She knew, deep down, and she followed him anyway."

"Well, I guess she was just that kind of person. Willing to give anyone a chance, you know?"

"I guess," said Lily quietly. Then, louder, "But she was so foolish. Thinking that just because he'd make an exception for her, that that would somehow erase all of the dark arts that he's done. She trusted him anyway and it got her killed. She couldn't save him and they were both killed." Lily's voice sounded strained, like she was choking.

James didn't know what to say. It was obvious that they weren't talking about the story anymore. He wanted to reach out, put his hand on hers, put his arm around her – but he knew if he did that, Lily would think he was making a pass. He didn't want to scare her away.

"I've got another one, if you're not too tired," said James, because he couldn't think of anything better to say. "Lighter."

He heard Lily sniff.

"What's it about?" she asked.

"Four friends," he said. "Well, they weren't friends in the beginning. They had to go through some difficult trials first."

"Is it a happy ending?" Lily asked quietly.

"The happiest," said James.

"Go on, then."

* * *

"Those stories are amazing," Lily said as James walked her down the hall to the guest bedroom. "I'm sorry I never got to read them as a kid."

"Ah, you don't have to be a kid to appreciate a good story, no matter the intended age," said James, leaning against the doorway. Lily could just make out his smile in the starlight drifting in through the window.

She was glad to hear him say that. Lily was so taken by the "Fountain of Fair Fortune" story that she had to wipe her eyes dry quickly on her sleeve when James looked away. The ending had given her chills.

"Well, make yourself at home," said James, pushing open the door. "See you in the morning."

"Night," said Lily. Then she did something entirely out of normal. As she passed James, she extended her hand to just barely grasp his – just for a second, with barely any pressure, without looking at him.

Lily crossed the threshold and closed the door quietly, leaving James standing in the exact same place, wondering if he'd imagined what had just happened.

* * *

It took Lily a few moments to remember where she was when she awoke the next morning. Her sleep-filled eyes took in the cream coloured walls, the red shear curtains wafting in the light breeze coming in from the open window. It was surprisingly nice, waking up properly in the Potter house.

Lily swung her legs off of the bed and stood up, going to look out of the window. She could see the cemetery where she and James had walked and began remembering details of the previous night. She could barely believe that she and James Potter had managed to spend nearly three hours alone together without killing each other. Really, though, it had been easy. Simple. Why was that? What was different about last night than any other time she spent with Potter?

Lily wandered into the bathroom, took a clean towel out of the cupboard, and decided to take a shower. There were quite a few more knobs than in a Muggle shower, but Lily figured out the system easily enough.

Maybe it was because of the break-up of sorts that she and Severus had, Lily thought as she washed her hair. But no, that couldn't be it. Yes, she had felt loyalty to Severus, but her fights with James weren't about that – at least not from Lily's end. No, it was James's arrogant, boastful actions that frustrated Lily so much. Like he was always putting on a show...

And then Lily realized. The last few days, just a few times, she had seen a different James than the one she was used to. When they were alone, James dropped the act. He stopped showing off. His storytelling last night was different than his usual front. It was something...private and more subdued than James's usual antics. He hadn't been trying so hard.

Lily had a sudden realization that she was taking a shower in James Potter's house, thinking about James Potter while doing so, and burst into laughter. She could see the exact face James would pull if he knew what was going on at this moment: terrified and shocked and ecstatic. It was a face almost worth him actually finding out. Almost.

Lily dried off and changed into the clothes she had brought in with her, then tossed the towel into the laundry basket (which burped loudly) and went to throw her dirty clothes into her bag.

When she walked back into the hallway, combing her fingers through her wet hair, she was startled by James, leaning once more against the doorway, toothbrush in his mouth, eyebrows raise.

"You said to make myself at home," said Lily pointedly.

James didn't say anything, but grinned around the toothbrush. He went to the sink to spit and closed the door behind him. Lily heard the shower start a moment later.

Lily headed downstairs. She was debating whether to try to make breakfast for the boys – it was the least she could do. However, Lily had inherited her cooking skills – or lack thereof – from her mother. On second thought, Lily would be doing them a favour to wait for James to do the cooking for them. Besides, she really should head back soon, Lily thought as she walked into the living room; but her thoughts were jarred as she covered her mouth to stop her laugh from escaping.

Sirius and Remus were curled up, cuddling, on the couch, both fast asleep. Sirius was lying on his back, tightly hugging Remus, his head lolling onto the arm of the couch, his mouth hanging open, his long legs sticking off the opposite armrest. Remus was lying partly on Sirius, his left arm dangling off the couch and his left leg dragging on the floor. He was secured from falling only by Sirius's grasp.

Lily heard James's footsteps coming down the stairs and rushed to meet him.

"Do you have a camera?" she asked in a hushed voice.

"Yeah," said James, walking into a room that Lily had not yet been in which appeared to be a kind of study. James took a Polaroid camera out of a desk under the window. "It's got the potion that makes pictures move injected in the film," he said, handing it to Lily.

"Perfect," she said, rushing out of the study and back into the living room, where Remus and Sirius hadn't moved.

"Why're you – oh," said James, chuckling as he caught sight of his friends on the couch. "Like I said, Sirius is a cuddler."

"I just couldn't resist such a picture perfect moment," said Lily, lining up the boys in the lens and clicking the button.

The flash seemed to confused Sirius, who lifted his head partway, eyes squinted. He looked slowly at Lily with the camera, James standing behind her, and Remus lying on his chest, before his head fell back onto the arm of the couch and he fell asleep once more.

Lily snorted again with laughter as the picture developed on the Polaroid. Photo-Sirius and photo-Remus would occasionally wakeup, look confused at their situation for a moment, then promptly fall back to sleep.

"That's definitely one for the books," said James, admiring the picture over Lily's shoulder.

"Here," said Lily, handing it to him. "Keep it as blackmail."

"Ah, I doubt either of them would be much threatened by this. It's happened enough times by now. But it'd be good to add to the album," he added, taking the picture and sticking it in his pocket.

"Do you think they would be horribly offended if I took off before they woke up?" asked Lily, as she and James walked into the kitchen.

"They'd be more offended if you woke them before their body clocks did. Are you in a rush?" James tried to sound nonchalant as he poured himself some orange juice.

"Not a rush, no," said Lily. "I just think I should head back. My parents are expecting me. Plus I have this odd urge to talk to Tuney." Lily didn't add that this urge had something to do with the fact that if she couldn't make up with a certain Slytherin, then she wanted to start mending relationships with other people she cared about.

"Okay," said James, and he did his best to not look disappointed. He led Lily upstairs to grab the laundry that they had left there the day before and Lily shoved the clothing haphazardly into her bag.

"Are you sure you don't want some breakfast before you go?" asked James as he walked her to the door.

"Nah, I'm okay," said Lily. "It won't take long to get home. Plus, best not to eat before a journey on the Knight Bus."

"Ah, indeed," said James knowingly, shoving his hands into his pockets and glancing at the ground. "Well, I'll see you."

"Yeah," said Lily awkwardly. "See you."

Halfway down the drive, Lily turned around just as James re-opened the door.

"Please come back again later this summer –"

"Would it be okay if I came back again if–"

Lily and James had said this at the same time in very rushed voices. They stopped and smiled at each other.

"Yeah, alright," said James.

"Alright," said Lily.

Then she waved her wand hand into the air, boarded the Knight Bus, and disappeared from view.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Thank you all for being patient with me! And thank you for all of the wonderful reviews! Oh Merlin, you lot are pumping up my ego.**

* * *

"I'm home!" Lily yelled as she barrelled through the door. She had done something of a ninja routine getting from the Knight Bus to her house, mostly out of desire to continue avoiding Severus, but partially because she was still on a high from the last few days and felt a little more goofy than usual – that is until a particularly ostentatious spin landed her in the shrubbery. Lily had cut the theatrics after that and made a beeline for her house.

Lily was about to call out again when she heard muffled voices from upstairs. Something about the scene put Lily on edge. She pulled out her wand and carefully dropped her bag noiselessly next to the stairs. She took a deep breath as she put her foot on the bottommost step and slowly began to climb. She didn't call out for fear of – fear of what? Death Eaters? Could something have gotten into her house? Lily struggled to fight back to panic that was rising steadily in her chest. Then, about midway up the staircase, Petunia came bolting out onto the landing, crying and yelling, "—AND ONE DAY I'LL LEAVE AND NEVER COME BACK!"

The abrupt commotion made Lily's whole body jump, and she was forced to grab onto the railing to keep from falling entirely as she slipped down a few steps.

"Jesus, Tuney!" said Lily. "Give me a bloody heart attack! What's going on?"

Petunia turned her gaze to Lily, and the rapid succession of emotions that crossed Petunia's face unsettled Lily in such a way that she wanted to take a few more steps down the stairs and away from her. First was a shock, like Lily had been the ghost of the last person that Petunia had ever expected to see; next came a look of contorted desperation; and finally a look of pure scathing anger.

At the sound of Lily's voice, Mrs. Evans had followed Petunia out onto the landing. She opened her mouth to speak, but Petunia beat her to it.

"HERE SHE IS!" Petunia shrieked in the ugliest tone that Lily had ever heard her utter as she pointed viciously down the stairs. "HERE'S YOUR PRODIGAL DAUGHTER! Going to do amazing things, aren't you?" said Petunia, turning once more to Lily. "Going to get out of Cokeworth, make your family proud! Well, GOOD FOR YOU!" And with that Petunia darted around her mother and back into her room, slamming the door behind her.

There was silence for a moment as Mrs. Evans wiped tears from her face and Lily stared with her mouth slightly agape at where Petunia had just been standing.

"What," said Lily, "the _hell_?"

Mrs. Evans gave a great sigh, shuffled down the stairs past Lily, walked into the kitchen, and put the kettle on. Lily stood still for a moment longer, debating which end of the staircase she should make her way toward, before finally pocketing her wand, descending, and going to meet her mother in the kitchen. Lily swung herself onto the counter and waited until both she and her mother each had a steaming mug in their hands before speaking again.

"What the hell?"

"Petunia is having a bit of a…moment," said Mrs. Evans.

Lily gave an ironically incredulous look and Mrs. Evans laughed dryly.

"Goodness, Lily, you can only imagine – we were talking about what the autumn is going to be like for her now that she's out of school and not going to university, and I didn't mean it in a _condescending_ way, mind you, but I just told her, if she wasn't going to university and she didn't know what she wanted to do, well then she was welcome to work a few shifts at the café. Next thing I know, she's off on me about expectations and potential and why we don't give her enough credit, and –" Mrs. Evans paused. It infuriated Lily when she did this. She would get on a talking spree, rushing on, with few (if any) pauses, until she accidentally started saying something she wasn't sure she wanted to go through with. Then Mrs. Evans would try to pretend that it wasn't entirely obvious that she stopped her speech so abruptly.

"Mum," said Lily. "I've heard it all before, I'm not going to get my feelings hurt – well, no, I mean, I _will_ get my feelings hurt, but it's nothing I can't handle."

Mrs. Evans sighed once more. "Oh, you _know_ then. The usual," Mrs Evans circled around the rim of her teacup with her finger. "That we give you all the credit for having potential, that we expect you to do great things and expect her to stay her forever and take care of us when we're old. Which just isn't true, your father and I would never ask that of you girls, of either of you. And I know we tend to get a bit _excited_ about you being different, but that doesn't mean that I love your sister any less, or that we expect less from her, and I tried to tell her that, but she just gets so _angry_ and –"

"Mum, it's okay, slow down," said Lily, sliding off the counter, setting her mug aside, and putting a hand on her mother's shoulder. "You remember what it was like after the letter. She's just – insecure."

"Well, you're a big person for seeing it that way."

Lily scoffed. "Yeah, well, fighting. It doesn't do a lot for the blood pressure."

Lily's eyes wandered up to the ceiling. She wondered if Petunia was listening through the grate that ran from the kitchen into the upstairs hallway. She and Tuney used to curl up next to it after they had been sent upstairs to go to sleep when their parents had dinner parties. Instead they would bring out their secret stash of biscuits and giggle for hours, pretending to be spies, listening to the adult conversations.

"I'm going to bring her some tea," said Lily, ignoring her mother's warning look. Lily put together a tray holding two full mugs and a plate of the kind of biscuits they used to stash away under the loose floorboard in Lily's room.

"Tuney?" said Lily as she balanced the tray so one hand was free to knock softly on the door.

"Go away," said Petunia.

_Well, at least she's not yelling anymore_, thought Lily. _That's a good sign_.

"I have tea. And hobnobs."

A small pause.

"The chocolate kind?"

"Is there any other kind worth our time?"

Lily smirked as there was a slight scuffling noise before the door opened a crack, revealing half of Petunia's tear-streaked face.

"What do you want?" said Petunia.

"To sit with my sister and eat too many biscuits and drink tea and gossip about the neighbours."

Another short pause.

"Only if you promise not to mention that dreaded school of yo—"

"What school?" said Lily, gently nudging past Petunia into the room, depositing the tray on the bedside table, and jumping cross-legged onto the bed. "Anyway, did you see what happened to Mrs. Anderson's hair? Apparently she tried to get a perm."

Petunia's lips pursed, but in the way that Lily knew she did when she was trying to fight back a smile.

"Looks just like her dog now," said Petunia quietly.

Lily crinkled her face in laughter.

"I dunno, I say the dog looks better."

"She should've asked the dog to recommend a stylist," said Petunia, as she perched lightly on the edge of the bed. Lily handed her a hobnob.

* * *

The next few weeks were slow, but not nearly as torturous as earlier in the summer. For one, Petunia had stopped making snide comments. In fact, she and Lily were getting on better than they had in years. This was mostly due to the fact that Lily barely ever mentioned Hogwarts or the magical world anymore – a sacrifice she was willing to make, as it made talk of Severus highly improbable. Severus himself seemed to be keeping to Spinner's End – at least, Lily hadn't seen him once since her return. The result was that Lily felt far less like a caged bird. Her summer was finally starting to feel like the relaxing vacation she needed. Having already finished her summer homework, she finally had time to read for fun. She and Petunia would even go out to lunch on occasion, or sunbathe (on the few days that there was no overcast) in the backyard. And some days she would go into work with her mother, who owned a small cafe in town, help at the cash register, and flirt with the local boys that came in on the weekends. It was during one of these times that Lily received her summer Hogwarts letter.

Lily saw the owl descending toward the shop, threw the towel she had been using to wipe down the tables on the counter, and rushed to open the door. Lily ignored the odd looks from the customers and sudden chattering as she stepped outside to meet the owl, who had landed on a nearby car.

The envelope she detached from the owl's leg was quite a bit thicker than usual, and Lily knew exactly why: her O.W.L. results. Lily took a deep breath as the owl flew away, wishing she were with Remus right now so that she could have someone with which to share her nervousness. She ripped open the parchment envelope, momentarily tossed aside the usual letter announcing the necessary books for the following semester, and turned to the official looking piece of parchment marked "Ordinary Wizarding Levels."

* * *

_**Lily Evans has achieved:**_

Astronomy...A

Arithmancy...E

Care of Magical Creatures...E

Charms...O

Defence Against the Dart Arts...O

Herbology...E

History of Magic...A

Potions...O

Transfiguration...E

* * *

Lily beamed at the letter, grabbed the discarded pieces of parchment, and ran inside to tell her mother, who was standing behind the counter.

"That's wonderful, darling!" said Mrs. Evans, leaning over the counter to kiss Lily on the forehead. She told Lily to go sit by the window and she would bring her over a slice of cake for celebration. Lily happily did so, turning to the other letters from Hogwarts as she sat. One was the usual enclosing the booklist. The other was a letter from Professor McGonagall, specifying that students need only buy the textbooks for the classes they are planning to take as part of the N.E.W.T. courses.

Lily leaned back in thought. She had never given much thought about what she would want to do within the wizarding world. The previous year she had had a career counselling meeting with Professor McGonagall, but even then she had been indecisive. McGonagall had told her to work toward whatever made her the most passionate.

But what was Lily passionate about? What did she want to do with the rest of her life?

Lily had the realization that, despite her seeming independence, she spent the majority of her time at Hogwarts trying to please other people. Potions with Severus; Slugclub parties; Quidditch matches; girls' nights. It was like everyone expected Lily to fit in everywhere, which made her likeable to a lot of people, yes, but at what cost? She was a mouldable puppet. But that did nothing to answer the question of what she wanted. Or who she was.

Her entire identity at Hogwarts had been shaped by her relationship with Severus. Now all of that was going to change.


End file.
